In many biological applications, it is desirable to crush particles so that their contents can be analyzed. For instance, there is great interest in the development of cost-effective and rapid methods for analyzing particles comprising bacterial or other cells in military, medical, agricultural and food-preparation applications. For certain particle types, however, particle breaking, lysing or crushing is problematic.
For instance, when stressed or starved for nutrients, vegetative bacterial cells can differentiate into dormant endospores, more commonly referred to as spores. Spores are highly resistant to inactivation and rupture by various physical treatments, including mechanical crushing, ultraviolet and gamma radiation, heat, and chemical treatments.
Embodiments of the present invention overcome these problems by providing an apparatus to facilitate the crushing of particles, as well as methods of using and making such an apparatus.